Day 4, August 30, 2023. Morning Challenge Course and New Pictographs. 9.1 miles, 7 portages. Kahshahpiwi, Trant, Hurlburt, no-name, Woodside, no-name, Reid, and Agnes Lakes.

Today's travels began with a challenge course disguised as a portage. Our maps (Tia carries a 1992 Quetico Foundation map that we've marked up through the years with portage and campsite notes while I carry a 2021 Adventure map) disagreed on the portage from Kahshahpiwi to Trant. My map shows two portages, 220 and 350 meters in length, connected by a stream. Tia's map shows a 1760 meter (1.1 mile) single portage. (Note: additional checks when we returned from our trip showed lengths of 1190 meters and 1026 meters, so we're not certain anyone knows the true length of the portage!) We're claiming the 1.1 mile figure as 'feels about right'. The portage started as shown on my map, then let us paddle a few minutes, after which we found a Quetico-proprietary mix of portage trail, beaver bog, moose meander, and goat trail with a few yards of bouldering traverse thrown in for AP credit. Wow, what a workout. It took us an hour to get from Kahshahpiwi to Trant, where we were rewarded with views of a set of pictographs we'd missed on a visit to Trant several years ago. After the pictos, we stopped briefly at one of our favorite Quetico campsites, where someone had left a woven bark basket, then moved on to Hurlburt.
The beautiful campsite on Trant.
From Hurlburt we paddled into a no-name. As we exited the portage into the no-name, we saw another canoe coming toward us—the first people we'd encountered since Sarah. There wasn't room at the landing for two canoes, and we told the approaching crew we'd quickly be out of their way. They thanked us for showing them where the portage was, and we chatted for a few minutes to share notes. We discovered that the bow paddler had recently retired, and was launching her retirement with a 78-day paddling trip! They had started this grand adventure at Lake Superior. They couldn't agree whether they were on day 46 or 47. We suggested they visit Trant, they suggested we visit Emerald, and we each continued in our own directions. After Woodside and Reid we were on Agnes, and headed for a campsite on a point shortly after leaving the portage from Reid. I had stayed at the site with a Boy Scout crew in 1986, and remembered it as having nice views down Agnes as well as easy access to Kawnipi via our choice of three options. It was about 3:30 when we reached the site, and we agreed that with the warm temperatures, stopping between 3:00 and 4:00 should be standard practice. The extra time let us have appetizers and leisure time before beef stroganoff, and lime cheesecake for dinner. The campsite was full of 'sweet fern', which fills the air with a wonderful fragrance when brushed against.
Floss your toes daily for better foot health!
Journaling with a view down Agnes.